1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a board-to-board connector of a straight type mounted on a printed circuit board (abbreviated briefly as PC board) and interconnecting two PC boards. More particularly, this invention relates to a board-to-board connector which has a height higher than the existing conventional connectors. The height of the connector of the present invention meets a customer's specific requirement, and an ingenious structure enhances a productivity in mass-production thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many types of board-to-board connectors of a straight type have been proposed and used for interconnecting two PC boards. In interconnecting two PC boards, a board-to-board connector having a specific height is required in some cases. In case that, for example, three PC boards, i.e., first, second and third PC boards are stacked in this order and the far separated first and third boards are required to be interconnected by a connector, a height of the connector is required to be much higher than a height of the conventional connector interconnecting two adjacent PC boards.
An example of the prior art board-to-board connector 1 for the above purpose is shown in FIGS. 1(a) and 1(b). FIG. 1(a) shows an exploded perspective view of the connector 1 including a cross section, and FIG. 1(b) shows an assembled side view, partly in cross section, thereof. Though the connector shown in FIGS. 1(a) and 1(b) is a jack-contact-type connector, a plug-contact-type connector also has the similar structure except a contact structure.
The board-to-board connector of FIGS. 1(a), 1(b) comprises a plurality of terminals 11 arranged in two lines and inserted and fixed in an insulation body which is composed of a first and a second insulation body 12 and 13. Each of the terminals 11 is composed of a jack contact 11a, a board contact 11c, and a straight portion 11b. In FIG. 1(a), only two terminals 11 facing each other are taken out from the connector and illustrated. The board contact 11c has an outwardly extending bent portion, and a pair of bulges 11d are formed extending on both sides of the straight portion 11b of each terminal 11. The terminal 11 is press-inserted (inserted applying pressure) into a through-hole 16 of the first insulation body 12 until the bent portion contacts to a bottom surface 12b of the first insulation body 12, thereby the bulge pair 11d being fixed to an inside wall of the through-hole 16.
When the first and second insulation bodies 12, 13 are fixed together, the jack contact 11a and a part of the straight portion 11b are inserted into a rectangular through-hole 18 of the second insulation body 13, and the remainder of the straight portion 11b stays in a rectangular through-hole 16 of the first insulation body 12. The through-hole 18 in the second insulation body 13 has two different cross sections, one denoted as 18b having the same cross section as that of the through-hole 16 of the first insulation body 12 and the other denoted as 18a having a larger rectangular cross section for easy insertion of a plug contact of a mated connector.
Since a main body of the connector 1 shown in FIGS. 1(a), 1(b) is composed of two insulation bodies 12, 13, these bodies should be fixed together by mechanical fixing measures when assembled. Though there are many fixing ways therefor, one example thereof is shown in FIG. 1(a). A top surface 12a of the first insulation body 12 is provided with a plurality of lock-arms 20 on a periphery of the top surface 12a, each protruding vertically thereon and having a rectangular shaped arm. Only two lock-arms 20 are shown in FIG. 1(a). On the contrary, a plurality of lock-protuberances 22 are provided on both side walls of the second insulation body 13 in a manner that each lock-protuberance 22 is engaged into the corresponding lock-arm 20 of the first insulation body 12 when two insulation bodies 12, 13 are joined together.